Advertise on podcast: The Story Power Marketing Show

You can build a business that works and still dread opening your laptop in the morning. Russell Nohelty is a USA Today bestselling author with more than 75 books and over 20 years of running creative businesses. He's coached plenty of creators who hit their numbers and still felt miserable. That pattern led him to an idea he calls the happy capitalist. Accept that you’re running a business. Stop treating money as something that cancels out the good you do for people. Marketing, Russell says, means paying attention to your yes pile instead of the people who turn you down. Sales means helping people make a decision, especially the undecided middle he calls the “one-three-one” group. Tom ties this to his Empathize, Envision, Enable framework, and Russell adds his own piece: find the blocks and objections that keep a buyer stuck. Then Russell walks through his seven-step Easeful Joy Loop. A few of the steps: Tune in to the opportunities around you. Quit saying no to yourself before anyone else gets the chance. Take the path with the least friction. And build what he calls a Good Chaos Engine, a system that pulls the right buyers toward you without leaning on social media. If you’re a creator or business owner who winces a little every time you sell, this episode shows you how to make money without losing the joy that got you started. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~00:54 Meet Russell Nohelty ~2:01 Origin of a "Hapitalist" ~03:08 Money Without Happiness 09:39 Getting Comfortable Selling ~11:03 Why Everyone Loves Marketing ~13:30 The Story Power "Three Es" ~15:57 Blocks Objections and Decisions ~22:20 Magnetizing Right People ~22:58 Easeful Joy Loop Framework ~28:21 Good Chaos Engine Offers ~30:06 Where to Find Russell ~31:22 Fishmonger Mindset Closing ~33:19 Wrap Up and Resources FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1237796277 CONNECT WITH RUSSELL Website: www.hapitalist.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noheltyr/

You’ve got a logo, a tagline, and a brand guide nobody opens. Your marketing says one thing. Your team does another. In this episode, Justin Ricklefs explains why he treats brand as an operating system that shapes how your people make decisions and treat customers. He walks through the Savannah Bananas’ “fans first” philosophy and his client Benefit Bay, whose mantra “we make the way” gives the whole team a shared direction. He also makes the case that care pays: in a market racing toward efficiency, it’s an advantage AI can’t copy. His advice for where to start is to get clear on why your company exists, then boil it down to a phrase your people can carry. Justin spent eight years in the Kansas City Chiefs front office, where he learned that growth follows when relationships come first. In 2017 he founded Guild Collective, a human-first brand building agency. His new book, Give a Damn: The Catalyst for Caring Companies, introduces the Fire Starter Framework for leaders who want to build companies that care. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~02:36 Chiefs Kingdom Lessons ~05:29 Brand Under Pressure ~07:04 Brand Operating System ~07:33 Fans First Story ~11:05 Human First Framework ~13:03 Care Beats Scale ~19:06 Where To Start ~22:12 Resources And Book ~22:29 Closing And Outro FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1235649795 CONNECT WITH JUSTIN Pick up Give a Damn here: https://thegiveadamnbook.com/ Substack: https://justinricklefs.substack.com/

Most team-building feels like homework. A slide deck, an icebreaker, a breakout room where everyone waits for someone else to talk first. Carlo D'Amore took a different route. He started out acting in New York, then began building true-crime mystery experiences based on real historical cases. Audiences didn't watch the story. They worked it. Before long, companies wanted in. Apple, Meta, Goldman Sachs, Netflix, Spotify, and Google have all brought his experiences inside. His argument is simple. You build a team by handing people a story to solve together. Solving it means taking some risks and owning a piece of the outcome. And while everyone's chasing the same clue, job titles stop mattering much. Carlo talks about what happens in the room. People laugh and feel the tension build as a group. Grown professionals start playing again. And sometimes the person who never speaks up in meetings is the one who cracks the case. If your team could use a story to solve, book a strategy call with Carlo's team. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~01:58 Carlo Origin Story ~02:55 Immersive True Crime ~05:19 Accidental Team Building ~09:04 Shared Emotions at Work ~12:54 Theater Breakthroughs ~16:21 Storytelling Not Engagement ~19:19 Results and Transformations ~21:40 How to Work With Carlo ~24:15 Parting Thoughts ~26:28 Wrap Up and CTA ~28:28 Outro Resources FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1233261613 CONNECT WITH CARLO Website: https://www.carlodamore.com/ https://liveintheater.com/ Social Media: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlodamore-creator/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liveintheater Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/liveintheater/ / https://www.instagram.com/carlodamore69/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CarloDAmoreLIT

Antoine Wooten Jr. is a coach, educator, and the author of It’s More Than Winning for You. His work focuses on helping people see their identity beyond productivity and performance through coaching, leadership, and mentorship. In this episode, he and Tom discuss how you can stack up titles and still feel like you're one bad season away from not mattering. Antoine knows that feeling from the inside. Athletics, training, real estate, nonprofit leadership. Every new title looked like success from the outside. Underneath, he was running from a fear of becoming irrelevant. He kept leading and kept showing up. He was also burning out, and by his own account, he was acting. In this episode, Antoine talks about where that pressure comes from. Shame, he says, grows when you measure yourself against an image or against someone else's win. Success means reaching the goals you set for yourself. Today he coaches high school athletes, and plenty of adults, to see fear for what it often is: avoidance. We build coverings to hide from it, and those coverings fuel both the performance and the anxiety. His alternative is to swap self-criticism for curiosity and get honest about what's driving you. He also walks through the model he teaches. You perceive something. You give it a meaning. You read that meaning as safe or as a threat. Your beliefs and behaviors follow from there. If you've ever wondered who you'd be without the next accomplishment, start here. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~00:54 Episode Setup ~02:13 More Than Winning ~04:54 Titles And Burnout ~09:34 Value Beyond Doing ~11:31 Shame And Comparison ~15:05 Coaching Young Men ~16:35 Fear And Coverings ~20:00 Curiosity Over Criticism ~24:35 Perception Drives Behavior ~27:22 Get The Book ~28:11 Final Takeaways ~30:44 Outro And Resources FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1231169726 CONNECT WITH ANTOINE Instagram: Antoine Wooten Jr.  Instagram: @theseen.collective Facebook: Antoine Wooten Jr. Facebook: Seen Known Loved

Jamie Dykstra is a non-fiction book ghostwriter and book coach who helps leaders turn the “I have so many thoughts” feeling into a clear message they can stand behind. She partners with executives and entrepreneurs to shape their ideas into books and thought leadership that strengthens culture, builds credibility, and extends their impact beyond the room. Your head is full of book ideas. Probably too many. In this episode, Dykstra explains how she helps executives and entrepreneurs narrow them down to one clear message. Her advice is to skip writing for Amazon sales and write for what the book can do for your business: new clients, credibility, and speaking invitations. Every project starts with a "road mapping" session to decide what the book is for. From there it runs on a plan borrowed from her years in finance and project management, so authors always know where things stand. She explains how she captures an author's voice so the finished book still sounds like them, and why handing the job to AI leaves out both your strategy and your voice. She also walks through what the six-to-eight-month process looks like. If you've been putting off your book because you don't know where to start, this conversation gives you the first step. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~01:51 Finding Your Core Message ~03:25 Why Write a Book ~07:18 Roadmap Before You Write ~09:07 Process Driven Writing ~14:56 Ghostwriting Is Still You ~17:08 Why AI Falls Short ~20:03 When to Hire Help ~22:55 Ghostwriting Timeline ~26:51 Where to Find Jamie ~27:58 Final Thoughts and Outro FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1229097669 CONNECT WITH JAMIE Website: https://jamiedykstra.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-dykstra/

Jessica Sorentino is an author brand strategist with more than a decade of experience helping writers and thought leaders connect with their audiences in meaningful, lasting ways. She has worked with top publishing houses, including Simon & Schuster and Macmillan Publishers, where she developed deep expertise in positioning authors for commercial success and authentic reader engagement. She is the voice behind Open Book: Where Storytelling Meets Strategy on Substack and co-host of the Third Glass: Reading Between the Wines podcast, where she explores the intersection of storytelling, publishing, and personal brand. Her insights have also been featured on many industry podcasts. In this episode, Tom and Jessica discuss why authors and thought leaders should build their brand early. Jessica distinguishes branding (what you’re known for) from marketing (targeted, ROI-driven campaigns) and argues that branding belongs at the start to give time for building trust. She recommends clarifying who you serve rather than focusing on logos, websites, or origin stories and recommends identifying a specific audience, finding non-transactional common ground, and using relationship-building tactics to shape messaging and niche. To round out the conversation they talk about balancing one-to-one relationships with scalable systems, the importance of word-of-mouth for books, avoiding the “professional persona” trap, and protecting creative wellbeing to prevent burnout. For anyone looking to build a personal brand or write a book, this episode is a must-listen. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~01:59 Branding Versus Marketing ~04:11 Start With Audience ~06:31 Stop Making It About You ~10:37 Niche Down With Joy ~15:07 Relationships And Scale ~19:28 Sell Books Like Readers ~24:16 Creative Wellbeing Boundaries ~31:00 Where To Find Jessica ~31:47 Final Thanks And CTA FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1226871996 CONNECT WITH JESSICA Social Media Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessicasorentino Substack: https://jessicasorentino.substack.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicasorentino/

Jorge Chavez is the founder and president of Topaz Sales Consulting in Austin, Texas. With more than 30 years of experience in sales and leadership, he created the Buyer Facilitator philosophy, a buyer-first approach that helps CEOs, founders, and sales leaders build high-performing teams rooted in trust, curiosity, and mutual fit. He is also a keynote speaker and mentor passionate about reshaping how companies think about sales, leadership, and human connection in business. Jorge focuses on how painful the “founder bottleneck” can be and how tough it is to build from nothing to something. He explains that in his experience it's usually driven by being too precious about what's been built already and being reluctant to find the right help or leaning on weak hiring and screening for sales talent. He and Tom discuss how he mentors owners to get past it and why sales conversations should focus on trust, truth, and saving time by helping buyers make informed decisions rather than pitching. If you're having a hard time finding quality talent and want a fresh look about what could be going wrong, this episode's for you. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~00:54 Meet George Chavez ~02:13 The Founder Trap Pain ~04:40 Founder As Bottleneck ~07:45 When Owners Get Help ~08:12 Buyer Facilitator Approach ~10:26 Hiring Pain Story ~12:28 Scaling Storytelling ~14:10 Topaz Purpose Story ~16:34 Culture And Delegation ~19:10 Letting Go To Exit ~20:41 Next Generation Growth ~21:37 Letting Go as Leader ~22:11 Choose Small or Scale ~24:27 Freedom to Stay Put ~26:44 Buyer First Selling ~29:03 Trust Truth Time ~32:54 Curiosity and Presence ~35:42 Empathetic Listening ~37:08 Multipliers Ask Questions ~38:53 Storytelling Full Circle ~40:50 Resources and Wrap Up ~42:05 Final Thanks and Reviews FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1225101660 CONNECT WITH JORGE The Buyer Facilitator Podcast - https://www.topazsalesconsulting.com/podcast/ Website: https://www.topazsalesconsulting.com/ Social Media: LinkedIn personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jrchavez/ LinkedIn Company: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10129970 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW_f261ztwFo7HJv3D-Hi5Q

Louis Swart is a business coach and founder of Ironbrij who's spent 35 years helping entrepreneurs stop blending in and start standing out. His new book, The B Myth: How Successful People Accidentally Build Businesses That Steal Their Lives, exposes a trap he's seen far too often: the chase for freedom that turns owners into the bottleneck of their own success. Guided by his signature mantra, "If you do it more than once, you need a process," Louis helps founders build businesses that don't depend on them micro-managing everything. Louis shares how owners become the hardest working, lowest paid person in their business and explains that hiring people who can do even 60% of your tasks increases output without expecting them to work like an owner. He offers three tools: the “2K principle” (2,000 work hours/year) to set an hourly benchmark and stop doing low-value tasks; a “post time planner” time-audit method to track what you actually did and spot waste; and the “one task” rule to avoid productive procrastination. If you're a business owner stuck in the trap of never being able to step away, you'll want to hear Louis's advice. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~01:48 Hardest Working Owner ~05:26 2K Principle ~10:57 Post Time Planner ~15:31 AI Time Savings ~19:00 SOPs Not Supervision ~24:12 Busy Badge Myth ~25:03 Busyness And Worthiness ~26:06 Big Picture Thinking ~27:28 One Task Rule ~30:37 Delegate Or Automate ~31:22 AI Content App Demo ~34:13 150 Things To Delegate ~38:30 Ironbrij Services ~40:29 Resources And Links ~42:41 Implement The Tools ~43:44 Final Wrap And CTA FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1223027952 CONNECT WITH LOUIS Website: https://louisswart.com/ Social Media LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coachlouisswart/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/louistswart/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coachlouistswart/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@coachlouisswart

Jon Benson is a copywriter, entrepreneur, and AI pioneer whose work has quietly shaped how the world buys things online. Best known as the inventor of the Video Sales Letter, the format that became the backbone of modern digital marketing, he has spent decades writing words that move people to act—not through manipulation, but through what he calls “persuasion that feels good on both sides.” Benson recounts creating the first VSL in 2005 by putting headline-style copy on slides to get viewers to consume every word. He explains key VSL elements like mirror language, relatable story-driven structure, and pacing that keeps attention and how they're still key in our AI-driven world. He argues this is because generic LLMs produce mediocre copy since they’re trained on the broader internet, so his BNSN (bnsn.ai) platform uses multiple models, proven frameworks, research agents, and filtering/blueprints to generate higher-converting campaigns. They key to using AI, he says, is to treat it as an acceleration tool, not a replacement for copy knowledge. AI is moving fast but that only makes the classic insights that much more important. Tune in to learn how. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~02:46 Birth Of The VSL ~05:54 VSL Essentials ~07:16 Mirror Language Research ~08:19 Story Loops And Cadence ~11:01 Fitness Copy Story Example ~15:36 From VSLs To Benson AI ~17:45 Why Easy Button Fails ~21:10 Blueprints RAG And Filters ~23:44 Frankenstein Copy Warning ~25:17 Jon On Marketing Limits ~26:22 Write What You Know ~26:43 Winners Only AI Training ~27:16 Skills Broke The Voice ~29:00 Repel The Wrong Buyers ~31:44 Buyer Alignment Profile ~33:18 Values Driven Copy ~41:19 Identity Beyond Politics ~47:32 Where To Find Benson ~49:03 AI Accelerates Not Replaces ~50:51 Final Wrap And Reviews FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1221029467 CONNECT WITH JON Website: https://bnsn.ai/ Social Media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itsjonbenson/ Twitter: https://x.com/itsjonbenson Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/itsjonbenson YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPDvmgurd-rym4pyPjviIuw?sub_confirmation=1 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonbenson

Asim Kumar is a Solution Architect who bridges the gap between deep technical systems and human psychology. Holding the industry’s highest credentials (CCSP, CISSP, CCIE, PMP, MBA, MSIS), he spent 30+ years "unblocking" multimillion-dollar networks for global enterprises. But his most profound expertise comes from a personal battle. For two decades he lived a dual life—celebrated Tech Consultant by day, but secretly "blocked" by fear and significant losses in the financial markets by night. This struggle taught him a critical paradox: You cannot fix a blocked mindset with a faster technology. This hard-learned lesson inspired him to write "Unblocked: The Power of Real Intelligence in the Era of AI" and to create the Avigna methodology. Kumar explains that AI provides speed but needs “real intelligence”—human judgment, empathy, and behavioral risk management—to avoid creating chaos. He emphasizes balancing the “tripod of success” (people, process, technology), assessing impact beyond ROI, and shifting from fear to focus by viewing AI as an opportunity. If you're looking for a measured, optimistic approach to using AI to improve your business and outlook, you'll want to hear what he has to say. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~00:54 Meet Aseem Kumar ~02:21 Secret Trading Life ~02:52 Dotcom Crash Wakeup ~05:31 Finance Dreams Collide ~07:03 Why He Stayed Quiet ~08:10 AI Era Turning Point ~10:18 Tripod Framework ~12:09 AI Plus Real Intelligence ~13:36 Tech Amplifies Chaos ~16:57 Total Economic Impact ~18:39 Avigna Methodology ~19:22 EPDF And Phases ~23:47 From Fear To Focus ~26:17 Vibe Coding Example ~28:12 Resources And Links ~30:13 Parting Thoughts ~31:25 Host Wrap And Outro FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1219163734 CONNECT WITH ASIM Website: https://www.avignallc.com/ Social Media: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/asim-kumar-362b35/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@asim-avigna Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/asim.avigna/?next=%2F TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@asim.kumar286

David Ebner founded Content Workshop in 2013 while earning his M.F.A. at the University of Tampa. David has adapted his creative writing and storytelling skills for commercial use and has built an agency around that core premise. He authored Kingmakers: A Content Marketing Story and has coached dozens of writers and students in the craft of storytelling. David shares how the agency began as a graduate-school co-op of “classically trained storytellers,” and explains core storytelling principles that translate to marketing, including character development and narrative flow. He contrasts creative writing with commercial writing, emphasizing that brand content must fit “conversion in a box.” They discuss why AI isn’t a magic button, how it can create a “sea of sameness,” and how to use it effectively by starting with SOPs, quality examples, audience knowledge, and human discernment. Ebner defines harnesses, agents, and skills, argues for “clarity before complexity,” critiques fear-based (FUD) marketing, and closes by stressing the customer is the hero of the brand story. If you're looking to upgrade your marketing with strong storytelling technique, especially when standing out in this AI age, you'll want to tune in. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~00:54 Meet David Ebner ~01:49 Origin Story Debt Joke ~03:51 Story Principles That Work ~06:57 What Marketing Must Unlearn ~08:24 AI Easy Button Debate ~12:35 Building AI With SOPs ~16:09 Agents Skills Harnesses ~17:57 Clarity Before Complexity ~21:59 Stop Fear Based Marketing ~29:46 Audience Data For AI ~32:05 Final Takeaways And Outro FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1217270357 CONNECT WITH DAVID Website: https://contentworkshop.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidjebner/

Adnan Malik, co-founder and CEO of Software Finder, is simplifying the software selection process for non-technical leaders and achieving 110% YoY growth without outside funding. His unique approach is a testament to what kind of growth is possible when leaders remind themselves of the fundamentals. Tom and Adnan get into why bootstrapping, rather than hunting for VC funds or other outside investment, forces a business to focus early on customers, keep their spending lean, and depend on faster market validation. He's a fan of “consistency over cleverness,” giving good decisions time to work, and he explains how to approach it. If you're an entrepreneur trying to figure out what to focus on in your early days with a business, you'll want to take a listen. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~01:47 Bootstrapped Origins ~04:23 Why Skip Investors ~08:11 Constraints Advantage ~12:41 Consistency Beats Clever ~14:46 What Software Finder Does ~18:55 Buyer Mistakes ~21:20 How To Get Started ~22:55 Vendors Win Too ~24:47 Closing And Resources ~26:39 Outro Reminder FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1215449828 CONNECT WITH ADNAN LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adnan-malik/

Simon "Si" Elliott is a strategic marketing leader, agency co-owner and customer experience expert with over 20 years of experience helping brands build deeper, more meaningful connections. As founder of customer experience consultancy Fabricx and co-owner of creative agency Diversity, he combines behavioural science with practical strategy to design experiences that genuinely resonate. In this episode, he and Tom discuss how brands can win in a digital, AI-accelerated world by prioritizing human connection, using behavioral science to understand what motivates people, and designing customer experiences that build long-term relationships. Si explains how AI speeds up marketing but can strip away originality and effort, making soft skills and empathy more valuable, and argues that technology should serve customers rather than replace meaningful interactions. They contrast manipulative fear-based marketing with ethical reassurance that addresses real anxieties, share examples from Zappos and airline customer service, and outline how to balance automation with human support at high-stakes moments. If you're worried about AI but also see it's potential, this episode will help you navigate the winding road to balance usefulness and retaining what makes you unique. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~02:08 Si’s Journey ~4:18 Behavioral Science Spark ~08:10 AI Speeds Everything ~12:37 Soft Skills Matter ~16:51 Scaling Human Connection ~18:23 Biases and Messaging ~21:33 Ethical Fear vs Manipulation ~26:03 Empathy Without Fearmongering ~28:29 Not For Everyone ~29:00 Zappos Service That Scales ~31:09 Support As Marketing ~33:19 Automation Versus Human Touch ~38:12 Airline Empathy Failure ~40:34 Empowered Agents Win ~43:49 Customer Experience Thinking Book ~46:34 Put The Phone Down ~48:40 Final Wrap And Reviews FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1213518838 CONNECT WITH SI Website: sielliott.com LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/si-ellliott

Ely Delaney is the creator of The Follow Up Rockstar System, teaching entrepreneurs how to go from surviving to thriving in any economy. He’s an Amazon bestseller with his three books “Marketing Tidbits”, “Networking Tidbits”, and his latest book, "The Follow Up Code: 7 Virtues for Building Trust Through Email." His best-selling training course “Networking Like A Rockstar” has over 1424 students registered globally.  In this episode, he and Tom discuss why email marketing isn’t dead and how better follow-up can raise open rates to 40–50% in about six weeks. The goal is to use platforms like LinkedIn or X to bring people “into your castle,” rather than depending on social media entirely - and Ely gets into how to do it. He explains common mistakes and recommends value-driven, conversational emails that tell stories. They also discuss testing frequency by audience, his two-year evergreen ghostwritten campaign service, and how to craft a killer re-engagement email. If you recognize the power of having your own list but feel like you're not getting everything out of it that you could, this episode is for you. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~02:42 Is Email Dead? (Uh, No) ~03:20 Own Your List ~05:13 Social Algorithm Risk ~09:50 Email Relationship Hub ~11:10 Why Emails Fail ~13:41 Value First Emails ~15:37 Frequency Debate ~20:02 Test Your Audience ~24:51 Write Like You Talk ~29:39 Services And Offers ~31:50 Follow Up Fix Course ~34:06 Slacker Email Tip ~34:51 Book And Wrap Up ~37:03 Final Outro FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1211851408 CONNECT WITH ELY Website: https://connectwithely.com/ Social Media: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elydelaney/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elydelaney Instagram: https://instagram.com/elydelaney/

Kara Ryan is the founder of Klyr Strategies, a communications advisory practice for senior leaders navigating high-stakes business moments. For 20 years, she's led global communications strategy inside complex, regulated Fortune 500 companies across healthcare, life sciences, financial services, and consumer sectors. She's partnered with CEOs and executive teams through mergers, IPOs, product launches, regulatory milestones, and leadership transitions — the moments where how you communicate can determine whether the organization moves forward with clarity or confusion. In this episode, Tom and Kara discuss how a leader should communicate, why talking points fail if leaders sound scripted, stiff, or unlike themselves; and how to build trust. She argues communications should be involved early, and illustrates how bringing it in too late can be an expensive mistake. She and Tom also explore how to use AI for speed and persona-based testing while not surrendering the human touch. If you're a business owner, author, or anyone managing an organization, you'll want to tune in for what Kara can teach you about communicating ahead of problems, inspiring your staff, and relating to customers. DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE ~02:07 Leader Is Message ~03:11 Before And After ~05:30 Personality Builds Trust ~07:53 Communicate Early ~11:37 Message Versus Delivery ~14:13 Red Flags And Feedback ~17:11 AI And Strategy ~21:52 Working With Kara ~24:35 Finding Your Story ~27:51 People First Empathy ~30:01 Parting Thoughts ~30:57 Where To Find Kara ~31:25 Wrap Up And CTA ~33:42 Outro Resources FULL EPISODE VIDEO https://vimeo.com/1210018296 CONNECT WITH KARA Website: www.klyrstrategies.com Social Media: LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kara-l-ryan Instagram: www.instagram.com/klyrstrategies